


Becoming a Better Tim

by DayenuRose



Category: Red Robin (Comics)
Genre: Coffee, Dating, F/M, Office Work, headache
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-20
Updated: 2019-01-20
Packaged: 2019-10-13 03:40:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17480465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DayenuRose/pseuds/DayenuRose
Summary: Tim was a good Robin. He know this. Likewise, he knows he's a good Red Robin.But at what price?In Gotham, being a good vigilante seems to mean sacrificing a full civilian life. Which leaves him wondering, can he still be a good Tim?orTim had a mountain of paperwork to accomplish before lunch, but he is tragically short on coffee. The day takes a definitely better turn when Tam arrives for a visit.This story takes place after the Red Robin comics in a mythical universe where the New 52 never happened.





	Becoming a Better Tim

Tim pinched the bridge of his nose and inhaled deeply. He really needed another coffee. It was ten a.m. and he hadn’t had any coffee since he’d finished the travel mug he’d brought from home. Normally, he would have made himself a fresh pot once he got to the office, but the canister of beans he kept there remained resolutely empty. Sure, he could head down to the cafeteria or across the street to the coffee shop, but the moment he left the relative privacy of his office he’d be swarmed with a hundred concerns that apparently only he could handle and they all needed to be dealt with _immediately._ It hadn’t taken him long to learn that if he stayed behind closed doors until he needed to be elsewhere, he could generally avoid most of the distractions. For this reason, he usually kept his office well supplied with everything he needed to get his work done. Last night after he’d drunk the last of his coffee, he had planned to pick up more beans on his way into the office. But, in his rush out the door he’d forgotten. It’d been a busy morning.

And, an early one. As much as he had wanted to ignore the alarm clock when it went off at five in the morning after only two hours of sleep, he’d gotten up anyways. There was just too much to do. All week he’d been looking forward to this afternoon’s session with R&D. The best part of running Wayne Industries was getting to play with the gadgets and helping plan the direction of their technology research. It made him feel like he was shaping the future. How cool was that? He often wondered if Bruce enjoyed this part of the job as much as he did. 

With a shake of his head, Tim forced aside the distractions and returned to the stack of reports that cluttered his desk. He had promised himself that he would finish his paperwork before the R&D session. Even fifteen minutes ago, he thought he’d been off to a good start. He’d already reviewed Human Resources’ weekly report about the various hiring programs they’d instituted to help provide jobs for Gotham’s most vulnerable. They’d be discussing that in tomorrow’s meeting. 

But, it was hard to review budgets for a half dozen different departments when the numbers refused to unblur. He lost seconds each time he blinked to clear his vision. If that wasn’t enough, there was the headache that pulsed steadily deep within his skull. Surely the only way to solve that was by the judicious application of trepanning. Or, caffeine. 

He was pretty certain this headache had more to do with his general lack of sleep and the change in the weather than his lack of coffee. The investigation he was working on as Red Robin was nearing a breakthrough, but each night the answer eluded him. That meant the late nights were rolling over into early mornings and sleep was the first thing to be sacrificed between his pursuit of justice and the running of Bruce’s company. Once he was finished with this case, he’d catch up on sleep before the next one. He was careful not to make any promises concerning sleep. Gotham had a bad habit of foiling his best intentions when it came to taking care of himself. He ran a thumb over the scar that marked where his spleen used to be. Who was he kidding? That hadn’t happened anywhere near Gotham. Well, whether the location mattered or not, it was better not to tempt fate anymore than he already had. 

Still, the office couch was looking more and more tempting. He resisted the pull to give in and let the pain and weariness win. If he didn’t get his work done now, it would still be waiting for him later. He’d have to do it tonight before patrol or wake even earlier tomorrow morning. His future self would not thank him for putting off the tasks. Besides, he wouldn’t be able to enjoy the R&D session with the budget reports hanging over his head like an oncoming storm. 

Well, budgets weren’t the only paperwork on his agenda for the morning. Maybe a change of pace would help him clear his head. 

Switching from the budgets to the next stack of papers, Tim groaned. According to the memo it was his turn to plan a charity event to help support Gotham’s underfunded public schools. What did he know about planning one of these things? Even though he hated the whole charade, he knew what was expected of him as a guest and how to schmooze with possible business contracts. Off the top of his head he could think of a hundred and one things he’d rather be doing—including babysitting Damian. Okay, maybe that was pushing things. Tim sighed, he understood why they participated in the social season, but that didn’t mean he had to like it. It was just that attending was quite a different set of responsibilities from organizing one of these things. And, up until this point, planning these things had always been someone else’s job. Apparently, now it was his responsibility. 

Tim was tempted to pull out his checkbook and make an obscenely large donation so he could be done with it. No. He couldn’t do that. The galas and charity events tended to remind everyone that they had a responsibility to help Gotham too. Instead of binning the packet of party proposals, he flipped through the suggestions, crossing off the ones that were just too absurd while he doodled mugs of coffee in the margins of the pages. At least these reports included pictures. 

It was the warm strong aroma of fresh coffee that first alerted Tim to the presence of someone else in his office. His head jerked up and his eyes narrowed in on the door as Tam let herself in. At the sight of her, Tim relaxed, sagging back into his chair and grinned. 

“Hi.” His browed furrowed as a frown quickly replaced the grin. He flipped through his day planner checking his list of appointments. “Did we have a meeting scheduled? A lunch?”

A mischievous grin tugged at her lips and her eyes sparkled. “Hi yourself. And no, we didn’t have anything planned. Can’t a girl just drop in on her fiancé?”

“Um....ah....” Tim’s cheeks coloured as he scrambled for words. Sure, they were dating, but he wasn’t ready for the engaged part yet. He’d thought they’d put that story to rest a while ago. 

“I’m teasing, boy wonder. I like seeing you blush.” All was forgiven when she handed him a large cup of coffee and placed a new bag of whole beans at his coffee brewing station. 

Tim sighed with satisfaction as he took a sip of the rich dark coffee. This was exactly what he needed. She had prepared it just the way he liked it. 

“I could kiss you,” he murmured to Tam. He wondered if she knew that he was actually more pleased with her company than he was glad for the coffee. Not that he was going to give the coffee back. There was no reason to be rude. 

She smiled coyly and set her slightly smaller cup of coffee down on his desk. “Then maybe you should.” 

Taking it as the permission she had intended, Tim wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her to him. She went willingly and sat on his lap. The kiss was warm and sweet and her lips were soft and eager. 

When the kiss ended, Tam remained where she was and ran her hands through his hair. A frown flickered across her face as she brushed her fingers across his heated skin. “Are you feeling okay?”

He thought about denying it, but Tam knew him too well. She could see through his excuses and lies. Instead, he tried to downplay the pain. “Just a headache.”

“Mmm. Did you take anything for it?” Without needing to ask where it hurt, she massaged the exact spot. She didn’t flinch when her fingers ran over the scars hidden under his hair. Tam never shied away from any of the injuries that marred his body. Instead, she always seemed to know exactly how to ease the aching muscles and tight shoulders. 

“No, not yet,” he admitted. Tim melted into her touch. “I don’t like the way the medications interact. Sometimes I think the side effects are worse than the pain.” 

“Then you should go back to the doctor.” She pressed a kiss to the crown of his head before he could protest. “I know, I know. You don’t like going to the doctor. But, they can’t help you if you don’t visit them.” 

Tim sighed. She was right, of course. “I’ll think about it,” he promised. 

“Good.” Tam slid off his lap and examined the mess of papers on his desk. “What do you have here? Can I help?”

“You don’t have to,” he protested. This was his job not hers. It wouldn’t be fair to foist this off on her. 

Tam picked up the budget reports. “Hey, I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t mean it. Don’t you remember what I was doing before I was sent out to rescue you? In the grand scheme of things, I was working for Wayne Industries before you were. I can handle a few budget reports.”

Tim wanted to argue, but was cut off by a yawn. 

She tugged him out of his chair and pointed towards the couch. “Go take a nap. Dad said you have an R&D session this afternoon. I know you don’t want to miss that. You’ll be no good to anyone if you fall asleep in the middle of a demonstration.” 

“But....” Tim stared helplessly at the mess on his desk. He couldn’t just leave his responsibilities. If Damian heard he’d taken a nap in the middle of the day, the brat would never let him hear the end of it. The kid had already tried to challenge Tim’s suitability at running WI. On the other hand, Dick would probably make a big deal of it too, but in the opposite direction. Particularly since he’d stepped into the role of Batman, Dick had become a bit of a mother hen where his younger siblings were concerned. Tim didn’t want that either. 

“I promise, I won’t tell anyone. It will be fine.” It was like she could read his mind. She effortlessly repositioned how they stood so she was closer to the desk and he was closer to the couch. “Let me help you. I have the time and you need the help. A good leader knows when to accept assistance.” 

“Thank you,” he acquiesced. From experience, he knew that the couch was actually quite comfortable—as long as you didn’t spend more than one night on it. 

She winked at him. “Don’t thank me yet. After your nap, you get to plan a gala.” 

This time he groaned. Maybe budgets weren’t so bad after all. The coffee was already helping. If he concentrated, he could definitely—probably—get everything done before lunch. 

Tam patted his cheek. “Oh, poor baby. You have to plan a party. Just think about the kind of event you’d like to take me to, then build the party around that.” 

Once again Tim blushed. At the thought of spending an evening with her, all he could think about was a quiet night in. A home cooked dinner and an evening playing games—board or video, he wouldn’t be picky. Maybe end the date cuddled around a campfire, roasting marshmallows and telling stories about their pasts. That was definitely something he didn’t want to share with Gotham’s social elite. 

“I’ll think about it,” he mumbled around a yawn. 

Her grin was once again mischievous. “Well, that’s a start. I’ll give you a hint. I’d like to go dancing.” 

“Dancing. I think I can manage that.” Tim smiled and wished he could pull her over to the couch with him. Instead he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her again. As the kiss ended and he held her a moment longer, Tim breathed in the scent of her and felt a load lift from his shoulders. She was good for him. She kept him grounded. He could relax around her and be himself. It probably helped that she knew about both sides of his life and was more active in the civilian part. He needed someone to help remind him how to be Tim. 

Their friendship had begun in blood and danger when he’d been hurting and depressed and searching for the seemingly impossible. Despite the danger he’d put her in, she had stayed by his side. Then, he’d almost destroyed their early relationship, with machinations worthy of Bruce. Their friendship had been strained, but she had had a point. He hadn’t wanted to lose her, so he made the conscious effort to mend the broken pieces. 

There was no denying that he tended to sacrifice everything in his life in aid of the mission. He recognized that he partially did this because he was terrified of letting anyone become to close again. In a much to rapid succession of events he’d lost almost every important person in his life and he didn’t know if he could survive another such loss. Tam knew this and she wasn’t going to let him push her away too. She wasn’t going to accept his excuses, instead she pushed him to be a better Tim. In the end, she’d forgiven him. As she had since the beginning of their relationship, she’d protected him and kept his secrets. She’d stayed. He swallowed back the swell of emotions. She really was amazing. 

“I love you,” he whispered. The words fell from his lips with every ounce of awe and passion he felt for her. He hadn’t intended to say that yet, all the same he meant it with his whole heart. 

She leaned in closer until she was all he could see and hear, touch and taste. Her presence overwhelmed all his senses. When she spoke, her words—like his—were laden with feelings, but they were also clear and steady. “I love you too.” 

 


End file.
